Aggression gets objectionable as officials fail to read the lips

When Yusuf Pathan was asked about the trigger that saw him launch a blazing assault on Deccan Chargers bowlers at Ahmedabad on Friday....

When Yusuf Pathan was asked about the trigger that saw him launch a blazing assault on Deccan Chargers bowlers at Ahmedabad on Friday,that controversial word sledging made its official debut at IPL III. Despite the fact that in-the-face aggression and objectionable utterances by bowlers and fielders after the fall of wicket have been a regular feature during game but somehow the match officials havent been reading the lips.

Even Yusuf wasnt complaining when he uttered the word sledging since it inadvertently slipped when he was speaking about the inspiration behind 34-ball 74 knock.

When somebody from the opposition involves in sledging you are more pumped up to do well. When I went in to bat,(Andrew) Symonds said a few words to me. After that I was determined to perform, Pathan said.

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The IPL media manager Mathew Slade confirmed that no sledging incident had been reported yet. The umpires take everything into consideration when awarding the fair play points. Since theyre so close to the action,Im certain it would be noted if anything of concern came to their attention. No player has been charged with a code of conduct offence during this years tournament,except for the penalties issued for slow over rates, he told The Sunday Express.

That means that S Sreesanth outburst after dismissing Naman Ojha,R Vinay Kumar objectionable goodbye to Albie Morkel and Murali Kartiks harsh words to Saurabh Tiwary have been a few of the many such instances that have gone unnoticed.

Though,all the IPL cricketers have signed the MCC Spirit of the Game code but they havent strictly adhered to it.

A member of the Kolkata Knight Riders team says: Such things do happen on-field because in a batsman dominated format,whenever a bowler gets a wicket,its natural that a bowler relieves all his pent up frustration.

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Former India coach Madan Lal feels that this behaviour isnt acceptable at all. Everyone can make out what these cricketers are uttering because of so many cameras around the field. A bit of sledging is fine,but abusing isnt. And thats what is happening in IPL, he says.

Former India pacer Manoj Prabhakar reasons out this overt aggression. Theres so much of money and that means there is pressure on the cricketers.. But definitely they are going over-the-top. You can say that IPL has succeeded in getting the maximum commitment from players, he says.

There is growing feeling that cricket is going the football way where the match officials are more lenient when it comes to on-field communication between rival players. Old timer Gundappa Viswanath thinks that these things just add to the excitement. This is a very fast form of cricket which has youngsters at the centre-stage. They dont mind letting their emotions fly. Its almost football-like, he said.

Mumbai Indians coach Robin Singh,however,isnt perturbed. It depends on match situation but these things keep happening in cricket, says Robin Singh.